Tag Archives: Open Source

Handbrake to the rescue

Posted on May 15, 2020 by Don Watkins

Recently my son asked me if I could locate a video of him scoring 35 points in one half of a high school basketball game. The game happened about eighteen or nineteen years ago. Fortunately many years ago I transferred … Continue reading →

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Talking about Linux and open source

Posted on May 13, 2020 by Don Watkins

Yesterday I collaborated with long time friend and fellow Linux enthusiast Phil Shapiro. Recently we had been exploring open source solutions for video conferencing. There are two platforms with which we had some experience and those are BigBlueButton and Jitsi. … Continue reading →

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What would you like to learn?

Posted on March 28, 2020 by Don Watkins

I’ve been involved with Linux and open source software for almost twenty years now. I’m writing this post using a Linux laptop from System76. I’ve been writing a lot of thought pieces lately which come my heart. Linux and open … Continue reading →

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A need to write

Posted on January 19, 2019 by Don Watkins

I started this journey thirteen years ago. I started blogging and enjoyed it but in the past half dozen years I have moved away from it and towards social media. I’ve felt something within me calling me to write more … Continue reading →

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I love my new life

Posted on October 12, 2018 by Don Watkins

It’s been five years since I left public education and in that time I’ve realized how much I like my life as a part time writer in an open source community. I had been looking for a research job in … Continue reading →

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Giving is its own reward

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Don Watkins

I recently read an article about the Hidden Benefit of Giving Back to Open Source Software. The main focus of the article is about the economic benefit. The author makes the point early on that, “The reason for that benefit … Continue reading →

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Every Wall is a Door

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Don Watkins

I first read the quote, “Every wall is a door” by Ralph Waldo Emerson on the wall of a Facebook friend. It continues to be one of my favorites. Just yesterday we got some unhappy news. When bad news comes it … Continue reading →

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Open and openness are the keys to life and living

Posted on October 27, 2016 by Don Watkins

A few days ago I wrote a short piece on Facebook and in it I reflected on my anxiety of a few years ago when I retired from public education. I was certain then that my future was bleak. At … Continue reading →

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An invitation to read the “The Open School House.”

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Don Watkins

If you’re looking for a fresh educational perspective and an invitation to build a school educational program that’s the embodiment of the maker culture then you ought to read “The Open Schoolhouse: Building a Technology Program to Transform Learning and … Continue reading →

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Once a teacher, always a teacher

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Don Watkins

I am preparing once again to teach class next Wednesday night at the Blount Library in Franklinville, New York. My first class of three adults met a couple of weeks ago and our topic was introduction to computers. The next … Continue reading →

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